AN: I can't believe it's over =[ The artworks and fanfictions were amazing. It's so wonderful to see the ship still alive. And my gosh did I get wonderful feedback even though none of my fics warranted it in the least. Thank you all so much for your kindness, awesomeness and help.

This one had me going back to the dictionary again because I honestly didn't have a clue what to write. I didn't want to go the whole 'Zuko and Katara get caught kissing' route but my brain was stuck on it. And when I turned to the dictionary page I couldn't decide which definition to pick and write about. Then I had a brain-twitch (It can't be called a wave.) I decided to take all seven definitions I was considering and write a little drabble about each of them. Seven drabbles for the seven days of Zutara. The original idea was to make each drabble 100 words so that the whole thing would be 700 words but… Yeah. It's very hard to shut me up. I still made them as short as I possibly could, though, and ended up with only 815 words extra. (-_-). It's probably obvious that I've never written a drabble before, isn't it? Despite that I hope somebody enjoys one of them, at least.

Thanks to all who read, reviewed, faved, alerted or lurked. Hopefully I caused no damage or disappointment to anybody. If I did I am so terribly sorry: I swear I will try harder next year. And maybe I'll see some of you before then =] Stay Flameo!

Xo Written Parody

Disclaimer: Avatar: The Last Airbender, Zutara Week and the ability to re-live a week does not belong to me.

Day Seven: Caught

She had honestly just gone to ask him if he'd spar with her. The rest were all too tired or too irritated after the long fly to the Fire Nation palace to want anything to do with her desire to train. And Zuko had always been a good match to her skills – sometimes too good for her liking. She had headed towards his private study, knowing instinctively that he would be there because his daily meetings and appointments were done.

She only heard the raised voices when she was right at the door, just about to knock. For a moment the surprise at the ferocity of the argument within froze her in place. Then she became rooted as the muffled voices filled her in on what was happening. Horror, pity and mortification flooded through her veins but she could not move. And then the final word was said and there were footsteps coming towards the door. Automatically she flung herself behind the first plant she could, cowering behind the leaves and praying she wouldn't be caught.

Mai passed her quickly without noticing. But just as she breathed a sigh of relief another wearing red parted the leaves and stared down at her with a blank face and furious eyes. For a long time they stared at each other.

"How much did you hear?" His voice was flat.

Katara got up and hugged him, trying to squash all the pain from him in the one movement. He let her embrace him, his entire body in turmoil at the fresh wound that was his break-up. Nobody seemed to remember she'd just been caught eavesdropping.

x-x-x

The rebels from the Earth Kingdom had caused enough fuss for all of the old gaang members to be called over to help. Katara found herself loving being able to take part in an actual fight again – the six months since the end of the war had brought her nothing that could satisfy the warrior side of her. She was second best at fighting with Appa after Aang and so she was paired with the great bison as they all attempted to quell the latest, most vicious riot.

Everything was going according to plan until seven archers all fired at Appa at once. He tried to remain airborne but the attack was too great. Katara screamed for him as he tumbled, flinging her out of the saddle and into nothing but air. She couldn't work up the nerve to even scream – terror held her mute. As she fell she thought of faces, flickering through them with flashes of deep, unyielding affection of varying degrees. She wondered if she'd miss them.

The last face was the one she focused on. Pale skin, black hair, wild temper, red-hot aurora. She shut her eyes and clung to his burning, golden eyes. Suddenly – a jarring impact followed by some more falling and even tumbling. The impact was not nearly as hard as she knew it should have been.

The first sight she saw was those eyes, tinged with worry. He relaxed when he saw her awake and then smirked in a way that told her he really wanted to boast about how well he'd caught her. And she couldn't find any part of her that wanted to shut him up.

x-x-x

She knew it happened: there would be times when the healer would need to be healed. But she had never expected it to happen to her – she was immune to such embarrassing situations. Until she was not. She dreamed wild things in that week as the fever raged through her body and every pounding of her head reminded her she was spending her holiday cooped up in bed.

Everybody pitched in to help but nobody did more than Zuko. As soon as they discovered that his natural body heat made her feel better at once he almost never left her side. Thanks to him it took her almost no time at all to heal.

It was when she went to thank him – yet again – for giving her back her vacation that she realized she would not get any time to spend relaxing after all. Instead she'd be (willingly) spending her time with Zuko who had caught her illness from her.

x-x-x

The vacation came to an end and it was with a heavy heart that she got the Fire Nation's newest train with the rest of her adopted family so she could be taken to the docks and then sailed home. She had really grown to love the Fire Nation, even though she hadn't seen much of it between being sick and healing Zuko. But even so the land suddenly had a pull on her that was almost addictive. She wanted more and she wanted it all the time.

As she traveled she kept playing Zuko's goodbye over and over in her head. He'd looked like he'd wanted to say something more to her, but the words had not come. When she'd looked back at him through the window she could see that those glorious eyes of him were burning as they locked onto hers.

Her heart had never felt as it did in that moment.

It was by complete chance – or a helpful twist of fate? – that she found the note in her pocked. Zuko's handwriting was instantly recognizable, even though the note contained only three words: Katara, stay. Please. She thought of him and especially those eyes and knew she could not deny him his request.

She caught the first train back to him.

x-x-x

The night was no more remarkable than any other and the mood was as it usually was. Nothing at all led her to suspect what the end of the evening would bring. Iroh was visiting and they had a huge feast with just the general and themselves. She supposed, later, that that should have been her first clue; she fitted in with Iroh and Zuko's private way of communicating as easy as if they'd shaped her for it. And Iroh made no remark at all of how long she'd been there seeing the Nation.

After the dinner he took her out in the twilight and taught her more about the turtleducks, scooping up a duckling for her to hold. Then they lay on the grass and watched the stars come out and they talked as they usually did. No pretenses, no walls, no trimmings. Blunt and honest and trusting.

She'd gotten a leaf in her hair that she could not remove and so she asked him to take it out. Innocent, unsuspecting. He did as she asked and then stayed half-leaning over her, seemingly gauging her expression. She looked up at him, felt herself freeze and then turn into the casing of a heart that was beating far too fast to be normal.

Zuko's kiss caught her perfectly on the lips.

x-x-x

The Firelord had been acting strange all day, but she'd put it down to nerves about a new law or new council member or something. She accepted his invitation to dine out with him, thinking he was trying to find a way to de-stress himself. But as the evening wore on it was hard not to notice that he became tenser and tenser with each passing minute.

Finally she could stand it no longer and she demanded to know what was wrong. He had suddenly become a mute, unable to utter a single sound. She'd prodded, poked, threatened, blackmailed and sulked. Finally he found his tongue.

But the things that poured from his mouth were halting, contradictory and nonsensical to the extreme. When it was clear she did not understand he tried to back out, looking more mortified and dejected than she'd ever seen him. His hurt had hurt her and she tried to get him to talk again, this time by coaxing. He rambled some more things in a mumble that did nothing for her clarity.

And then she saw that he was holding a piece of fine Fire Nation satin. And it clicked suddenly that it was probably just the right size to fit around her neck.

She finally caught his meaning and began to cry. He was utterly alarmed until she kissed him and told him yes about a million times.

x-x-x

Katara was caught in two unrelenting prisons. One of them was a large expanse of tangled sheets that wove around her entire body like a cocoon keeping her almost utterly immobile. Her other snare was even stronger – pale, muscular limbs that held her tight and close as their owner slept on. She contemplated getting up – she'd always been one who loved her freedom, after all. And she'd always had the habit of rising as soon as she awoke to stretch or bend or do other little things in. She had never been one to partake in the practice of just lounging in bed. But the contemplation lasted only a minute before she snuggled closer, becoming even more caught in blankets and Zuko's arms.

It was time for new habits. She was, after all, a married woman now.